2017 NBA Coach of the Year Betting Odds

The 2017 season is upon us and we are getting into the awards. The coach of the year award is always one of the toughest to pick as it’s one of the hardest categories to pick what the voters might do. Sometimes it’s the coach of the best team, sometimes it’s the rookie coach and sometimes it’s the coach of the most surprising team in the NBA. You really never know what you are going to get with this award.

The favorite is Steve Kerr +300, but that is not even that big of a favorite. It’s hard to see how he’ll win this one though. He clearly has what everyone considers to be the best team in basketball and he already had the team that set the new wins record. So, what can he possibly do this year to win again? Set another wins record? I think that’s the only way and I just don’t see that happening.

Tyronn Lue and Gregg Popovich both sit at +400 and both are basically safe bets. Lue could do it by having a regular season team that outperforms last year’s team. Now people will notice that. Popovich can do it just by continuing to do what the Spurs always do. He’s arguably the best coach every season and he’s bound to win it one of these years.

Two great candidates sit at +700 in Tom Thibodeau and Brad Stevens. Brad Stevens could have the #2 seed in the Eastern Conference and a team that really takes a big leap forward. Everyone loves what he has done the past couple of years and you would think he’d be recognized for it at some point. Thibodeau is another great one as everyone expects the Wolves to make a large leap forward this season and make the playoffs. He would get a lot of the credit if that happened.

If you are looking for some great longshots, look no further than Luke Walton at +3300. I don’t think people realize just how good this team will be just by getting rid of Kobe Bryant. The players will be able to play their games and he should bring some of that Golden State style offense to LA. Showtime will be back and that should make the Lakers a much more fun team. Maybe not a playoff team, but still a very fun team.

I also like Steve Clifford at +5000 as well. He’s been doing great stuff in Charlotte without anything close to a superstar and he should do it again this year. With two teams filled with superstars set to dominate this NBA season, it’s easy to imagine a world where the voters want to honor a team without any.